Ever wondered what life was like in Texas during the late 1800's? At the upcoming 34thAnnual Folk Life Festival, visitors will get a chance to experience pioneer life by seeing how they dressed, how they survived, the types of foods they prepared and even where their children went to school. Other activities include: blacksmith demonstrations, hand quilting, woodworking and roping skills presentations. Admission is only $1.

Visitors will also be able to walk the nature trails, visit the duck ponds and see the exhibits in the science and history classrooms.

It was a Spring Break to remember for 13 Katy Independent School District art students whose artwork advanced to the Houston Livestock Show & Rodeo (HLS&R) Art Auction, which raised a total of $316,000. As with last year, Katy ISD had more students in the art auction than any other participating school district.

Tompkins High School 11th grader Madelyn Huynh's creation entitled "Texas Stud" won Class Champion over the monochromatic drawing entries and was the highest placed piece among high school entries, with bids reaching $75,000. Adriana Landin-Seneriz from Tays Junior High auctioned her painting, "Midsummer Dreamin" for $49,000 and was named the Junior High Class Champion. Likewise, Ashley Chung from Beck Junior High stepped onto the stage to be named the Reserve Class Champion for her creation entitled "Next to the Road," which auctioned off for $32,000.

"The details placed into each piece of artwork is breathtaking," said Assistant Director of Fine Arts Mitzi Jones. "Even more impressive is that this year Katy ISD swept the junior high art division by taking the top two placements over all the junior high entries," added Jones.

Two hundred and twenty-three students from Katy Independent School District were named Regional Scholastic Art & Writing Award winners by the Harris County Department of Education. In the regional art awards, there were 137 students while in regional writing there was a total of 86 recipients. This included 79 Gold Keys, 109 Silver Keys and 122 Honorable Mentions. This year Katy ISD has nearly tripled its overall winners and increased its Gold Key winners, which is the highest honor.

"The best part of this recognition is that so many Katy ISD campuses were included," said Secondary English Language Arts Coordinator Amanda Palmer. "There are thousands of entries every year ranging from photography, poetry, mixed media to short stories. Our Katy ISD students are part of "Creating the Future", through their art and writing pieces," added Palmer.

Top award Gold Key recipients advance to national judging to be considered for Gold and Silver Medals which are announced March 12 and awarded June 6 through a ceremony at Carnegie Hall in New York City.

The Scholastic Art & Writing Awards, founded in 1923, provide young artists and writers in grades 7-12 with the opportunity to showcase their art and writing talents. The goal of these competitions is to bring outstanding visual art and writing created by teens to a national audience by showcasing the work and encouraging creative development.

A public meeting has been scheduled for Wednesday, April 17,
2019, at 1:00PM in the Katy Independent School District Education Support
Complex, Room 1200 located at 6301 South Stadium Lane, Katy, Texas regarding
the ESEA Title I, Title II, Title III, Title IV, IDEA B Special Education, High
School Accelerated Instruction and Carl D. Perkins CTE programs as implemented
in the 2018-2019 school year and as proposed for 2019-2020 school year. The
staff and the public are invited to comment on these programs. A written
statement for the record must accompany all comments made. In addition, parent
and teacher surveys have been created to gather input on these programs. The
links to each electronic survey are listed below.

During the month of February, Katy Independent School District celebrated National Signing Day events across its high schools. This is a day when the countless hours of practice, sweat and effort pay off for several Katy ISD athletes, as well as a memorable moment in which high school seniors sign a binding national letter of intent for a collegiate sport. Several Katy ISD signees committed to numerous prestigious colleges across the country and additional student signing events are set to take place throughout the year.

Katy Independent School District is proud to announce the recent 2019 Katy ISD Spelling Bee Winners. The winning word was "drupaceous" which Beckendorff Junior High Keerthana Krishnan spelled out without hesitation. The seventh-grader went through a rigorous 21 rounds of competition to ultimately be recognized as the Spelling Bee Champion of Katy ISD. Memorial Parkway Junior High seventh-grader Beck Beathard was named the Spelling Bee Runner-up and Janina Ojeiduma, an eighth-grader from Seven Lakes Junior High was named Spelling Bee Alternate.

"The hard work, determination and countless hours spent by these Katy ISD students to prepare for such competition is a clear demonstration of their passion to excel in whatever they set their minds to," said Katy ISD Instructional Officer for Curriculum and Instruction Lisa Wells. "Students are excited for the District's competition and we know they will represent Katy ISD well," added Wells.

Keerthana and Beck will represent Katy ISD at the Houston Public Media Regional Spelling Bee on March 23. The Champion and Runner-up at the Regional Spelling Bee event will then advance to the Scripps National Spelling Bee in Washington D.C. in May 2019.

Katy Independent School District recently announced Golbow Elementary Principal Dr. Ann Lalime and Morton Ranch High School Principal Julie Hinson as Katy ISD Principals of the Year as well as honorees for the Region IV Principal Recognition.

Both school administrators were selected by their peers for their ability and willingness to make meaningful contributions to education, their desire for continuous personal and professional growth as well as their ability to inspire Katy ISD students and staff to reach their goals.

Dr. Lalime has worked in the field of education for 25 years including 10 years as a principal, eight years as assistant principal, one year as an instructional specialist and six years as a teacher.

"It is an honor and privilege to serve the students, staff and community at Golbow Elementary," said Dr. Ann Lalime. "I am always amazed by how our staff goes above and beyond to work together to help our students grow every day. We have created a bright vision for the future and the possibilities are unlimited for our students," said Lalime.

Julie Hinson has 21 years of experience in education, 17 of which she has been at Katy ISD. This is her fourth year as principal for the District. Hinson opened up Morton Ranch High School (MRHS) as the first head swim coach and math teacher and has been at MRHS for 12 of the 15 years the school has been open."I am passionate about providing our students a voice to effect change in their world," said MRHS Principal Julie Hinson. "When they shake my hand at graduation, they are young adults ready to take risks, accept challenges, and use their voice as proud Mavericks," added Hinson.

Both principals, along with campus administrators from school districts in the surrounding area, will participate in a recognition ceremony at the Region IV Principal Recognition ceremony on April 3 at Hotel Zaza.

The artwork of 27 Katy Independent School District students has been recognized by the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo (HLS&R), with many of those creations now advancing to Grand Prix Judging and to auction. Best of Show, Gold Medal and Special Merit were among some of the prominent achievements of Katy ISD art students who have worked tirelessly to perfect their masterpieces.

"Our art students take great pride in selecting personal western heritage resources and turning them into works of art," said Assistant Director of Fine Arts Mitzi Jones. "Rodeo art competition allows students to sharpen their skills, think critically and finalize newly developed ideas into a champion piece," added Jones.

The HLS&R School Art Program provides students, Pre-K through 12th grade, the opportunity to compete in district shows, earn scholarships, travel to summer workshops and display artwork at the Hayloft Gallery at the NRG Center for viewing between February 25 – March 17. The Grand Prix judging consists of all the 100+ school districts and private schools that participate in the annual competition. Grand Prix selects which pieces of art will be awarded the Grand Champion, Reserve Champion and Class Champions recognitions. Those art pieces will then advance to the March 10 HLS&R Art Auction.

​For 76 years now, the Katy Independent School District FFA Livestock Show has provided opportunities for students to develop and showcase their talents in a diverse range of agricultural pathways. This year the Katy ISD FFA Livestock Show & Katy Rodeo will take place at the new Gerald D. Young Agricultural Sciences Center.

"This is a historical year for the Katy ISD FFA students because not only will they be presenting their yearlong projects in a brand new facility, they will also be competing for prestigious recognitions and scholarships in a more modern and spacious facility," said Director of Career & Technical Education Dr. Sarah Martin. "As a result of the Katy FFA program many students become our next veterinarians, engineers, teachers among other industry professions," added Martin.

As part of the activities and celebrations, Katy ISD will be officially dedicating the Gerald D. Young Agricultural Sciences Center, the L.D. Robinson Pavilion and the W.E. "Billy" Morgan Rodeo Arena on Saturday, February 16 between 12:30 – 1:00 p.m.

It was the surprise of a lifetime for two Katy Independent School District educators who never imagined their busy school schedule would somehow include a twist of excitement. Katy Elementary Music Teacher Leslyn Jacks and Memorial Parkway Principal Doreen Martinez were shocked to see H-E-B representatives and camera crews arrive at their school with a large $1,000 check, balloons, cookies, flowers and the stunning news that they would be traveling to Austin, TX on May 4-5 to compete at a statewide level for larger cash prizes totaling $430,000.

Besides receiving $1,000 checks, Mrs. Jacks' school will also receive a $1,000 check and Principal Martinez' school will receive a $2,500 check.

"It's always great to celebrate the passion, dedication and creativity of our Katy ISD educators," said Assistant Superintendent for School Leadership and Support Dr. Dawn Carlson-Scruggs. "I'm proud to say that some of the best educators in Texas are part of the Katy ISD family," added Carlson-Scruggs.

H-E-B's Excellence in Education is the largest monetary awards program for educators in Texas, and among the largest in the nation. The Excellence in Educations Awards was launched by H-E-B in cooperation with the Texas Association of School Administrators in 2002 as a positive way to support public education in Texas.

Katy Independent School District Board of Trustees approved to name the District's newest elementary school after Olga Leonard. The new school is currently being built in the northwest quadrant of the District in the Morton Creek Ranch subdivision. Leonard is known for her accomplishments as an elementary, junior high, and high school classroom teacher, an instructional specialist and as an elementary campus administrator in Katy ISD. She first came to the District in 1985 as a first-grade teacher at Bear Creek Elementary, followed by K-6 instructional careers at West Memorial Elementary and Hutsell Elementary.

In 1987, Mrs. Leonard began collaborating with the district as a curriculum writer and teacher trainer, while providing bilingual instruction to students at Sundown Elementary where she was honored as Teacher of the Year in 1989. After that, Olga served as a teacher, team leader and ESL teacher at Cimarron Elementary.

Following her years in the elementary setting, Olga began teaching Spanish at West Memorial Junior High and McDonald Junior High. She earned her teaching certification for secondary Spanish, served as a member of the Texas Collaborative Transition Project Committee, and soon went on to teach Spanish at Taylor High School. During this time, Olga delivered multiple professional development sessions at the state and national level, even winning "Best in State."

The end of the century marked the moment that Olga Leonard began her educational administrative journey. She served as an instructional specialist for Bilingual Education, Languages Other than English (LOTE) and English as a Second Language (ESL). Her success in paving the way to multiculturalism in the Katy granted her the opportunity to take bilingualism to a whole new level. Leonard implemented dual language programs serving both speakers of other languages and native English speaking students. In 2001, she helped open Schmalz Elementary as an assistant principal, where she served until 2003. The following year, she also assisted in the opening of Kilpatrick Elementary, also as an assistant principal.

Always putting children first, her passion for student learning can be seen in the distinctive artistic seal Olga left in the murals she painted and donated to Schmalz Elementary and Memorial Parkway Elementary.

After being an assistant principal in two Katy ISD schools, she went on to serve as principal of Memorial Parkway Elementary, interim principal at Polly McRoberts Elementary, and as supervisor of student teachers.

Olga Leonard graduated from Southwest Texas State University in 1981, with a Bachelor of Arts in Bilingual Elementary Education. Her voyage into the classroom started the same year when she was hired as a bilingual teacher in Spring Branch ISD. She later earned a Master's Degree in Administration and Supervision with Principal Certification from the University of Houston. Olga and her husband have two adult children.

TheKaty Independent School District Pre-Kindergarten program registration for the 2019-2020 school year will take place April 16, 2019 for children who qualify and are zoned to the District. Prior to registration day, parents of those students eligible for the program are encouraged to complete the online registration process through Katy ISD's PowerSchool Registration website, which will become available beginning March 4, 2019.

Students zoned to Wolfe Elementary will register at Bear Creek Elementary.

Students zoned to Randolph, Davidson, Stanley, Shafer, Wilson and Wolman will register at Griffin Elementary.

Students zoned to Bryant Elementary will register at Katy Elementary.

Students zoned to Bethke Elementary will register at King Elementary.

Students zoned to Pattison Elementary will register at Hayes Elementary.

Students zoned to Nottingham Country will register at Memorial Parkway Elementary.

Students zoned to WoodCreek will register at Rylander Elementary.

Students zoned to Olga Leonard Elementary will register at Morton Ranch Elementary.

The Katy ISD Pre-Kindergarten program follows the state guidelines set for Pre-K which focus on oral language development, reading and math readiness, as well as developing science and social studies knowledge and skills. Click the Katy ISD Pre-Kindergarten program link for additional information about eligibility requirements or call the Office of Interventions, at 281-237-7062.

Katy ISD art students number more than any other district in the 2019 School Art Program auction with 13 students advancing to the auction. Katy ISD is pleased to have a total of 19 students earning cash school art program awards at this time. This is the first year in the history of the auction and Katy ISD that our two junior high students have swept the top two awards over 120+ districts competing!

Work will be auctioned on: Sunday, March 10th starting at 11:45 am (NRG Arena in the Sales Pavilion)

Katy ISD Art Auction: 13 Students to participate

Lot Number

Award

Student First

Student Last

Artwork Title

Campus

Art Teacher

Grade

# 8

Junior High Class Champion

Adriana

Landin-Seneriz

Midsummer Dreamin'

Tays Junior High

Katrina M Cerk

8th Gr

# 15

Junior High Reserve Class Champion

Ashley

Chung

Next to the Road

Beck Junior High

Alycia Sundrla

7th Gr

# 3

Class Champion, Monochromatic

Madelyn

Huynh

Texas Stud

Tompkins High School

Christie Skinner

11th Gr

# 18

Auction Lot

Seogene

Lee

Done for the Day

Katy HS

Natalie Rodriguez

11th Gr

# 21

Auction Lot

Nour

Rashad

Into the Sunset

Tompkins High School

Christie Skinner

12th Gr

# 23

Auction Lot

Luana

Rodrigues do Sacramento

LiL Dreams and texas things

Tompkins High School

Christie Skinner

12th Gr

# 24

Auction Lot

Michele

DuPont

On Duty

Tompkins High School

Christie Skinner

11th Gr

# 33

Auction Lot

Angel

Luo

Spirit

Cinco Ranch High School

Patricia Kuhn

11th Gr

# 34

Auction Lot

Alekya

Vejendia

Morning Glory

Seven Lakes High School

Kimberly Glasgow

12th Gr

# 35

Auction Lot

Ruofan

Zhang

Lassoing the Prize

Seven Lakes High School

Kimberly Glasgow

12th Gr

# 57

Auction Lot

Chelsea

Tang

Western Wear

Seven Lakes High School

Kimberly Glasgow

11t Gr

# 66

Auction Lot

Zoe

Puno

Future Rider

Tompkins High School

Christie Skinner

9th Gr

# 71

Auction Lot

Chloe

Low

Hello Neigh-bor

Tompkins High School

Christie Skinner

9th Gr

It is a record-breaking year in Katy ISD for the three-dimensional art students as they earned a total of six automatic premiums in the Ceramic/Sculpture Category. (These pieces do not auction; however, they earn the same premiums equivalent to the premiums paid to the two-dimensional work in Lots 17 and up)

It's a first for Katy Independent School District!This yeara total of six high school teams will be headed to the Texas Academic Decathlon Event to be held on March 8-9 in San Antonio, TX. The District has the most schools heading to State of all the districts competing at the 5A Large Schools Division level. Katy, Morton Ranch, Taylor, Cinco Ranch, Seven Lakes and Tompkins high schools will each be sending a team of nine students to compete.

"Participating in decathlon team activities provides our Katy ISD students the opportunity to experience the challenges of high-level academic tasks. It also promotes a sense of team effort to accomplish academic excellence," said Alene Lindley, Director of the Katy ISD Secondary Curriculum, Gifted and Talented (GT) and Advanced Academics Department. Two weeks ago, the six teams participated in the Regional Academic Decathlon at Seven Lakes High School where they obtained the needed cumulative points to move onto the next level. The curriculum, provided by the United States Academic Decathlon (USAD), changes each year and includes roughly 1,000 pages of a high-level curriculum covering Math, Music, Economics, Science, Literature, Art and Social Studies. Students also have to prepare and deliver a memorized speech and give an impromptu presentation. Additionally, they also have to sit in an interview and write an essay.

The Texas Academic Decathlon Event is the second largest academic program in the nation where students have the opportunity to be one of the beneficiaries of $150,000 in scholarship. The top scoring teams will head to the United States Academic Decathlon competition to be held in Bloomington, Minnesota from April 25-27.

]]>DiPetta, Maria A (COMM/INFO)Fri, 22 Feb 2019 14:43:04 GMThttp://katyisd.org/Lists/latestnews/DispForm.aspx?ID=1015Registration Now Open for Is it Mean? Is it Rude? Is it Bullying? Sessionhttp://katyisd.org/Lists/latestnews/DispForm.aspx?ID=1014

Registration Now Open for

Is it Mean? Is it Rude? Is it Bullying?

Session

Nowadays bullying has become a well-known term among parents and students. However, often times other behaviors are categorized as bullying, when they are not.

As part of the next Legacy Parent Academy education session entitled, "Is it Mean? Is it Rude? Is it Bullying," participants will explore the key differences between bullying and being rude and/or mean. Attendees will learn about the various forms of bullying and how campus administrators are taking steps to determine if an incident is considered bullying or another offense, as defined by the Katy ISD Discipline Management Plan. The session will also include strategies that parents can use to help prevent and respond to an incident of bullying.

Another successful Katy ISD FFA Livestock Show is in the books! This year's event was especially ecstatic as students, teachers and guests enjoyed a newly constructed complex, like no other in the state of Texas, where opportunities for agricultural sciences education are limitless. Though physically the buildings are new, there's a wealth of history behind the construction of the three new facilities named after Gerald D. Young, L.D. Robinson and William Edward "Billy" Morgan.

On Saturday, February 16, the portraits of the three Katy ISD namesakes were revealed during a dedication ceremony. Among the crowd was living legacy, Gerald D. Young, whom until this day plays an active role in the Katy ISD Livestock Show & Rodeo. Mr. Young, who was hired to work in Katy ISD in 1980, worked with the 74 vocational agricultural students attending Katy High School. He was also in charge of the District 2 Livestock Judging Contest, which later became the Katy Invitational Judging Contest. With his leadership, the program continues to flourish today. Through his 22 years as a teacher in Katy ISD, Young was responsible for training 60 teams that qualified for state contests. Of those, 10 won state and seven went on to the national contest, where five teams place in the top five of their respective categories, with one national winner. He was also instrumental in the advancement of agriculture sciences as part of the District's educational curriculum. He helped write and lobby for House Bill 3485, which passed, allowing agricultural sciences courses to count for science, math, speech and fine arts.

"I would tell the young students and teachers in Katy ISD, you have found a home," said Namesake Gerald D. Young. "There is no better place to teach agricultural sciences than at this new facility," added Young.

In 1942, L.D. Robinson and his family moved to Katy, TX to pursue his ultimate dream: to create an FFA chapter like no other. The visionary educator wanted to create a chapter that included a science farm, livestock show and rodeo, complete with a lighted rodeo arena, among other amenities, which would not cost the district any money. In 1943, with just $45, Robinson bought nine pigs to raise and auction. They were housed in the old PTA shack he bought for $12.50, creating a hands-on learning experience for the Ag students. To gather a crowd for the auction, Robinson had the ingenuity to organize a "Cowboy Sports Rally Rodeo" as entertainment to coincide with the pig sale. Thus marked the very first Katy ISD FFA Livestock Show and Rodeo. In 1947, a farm complex, barns, bleachers and an arena were completed just south of Katy High School. The event developed into the first full-service K-12 program of its kind in the nation. Because of Robinson's dream and vision, Katy ISD's FFA programs now exists in every high school and more than 3,200 students benefit from the lessons, mission and education offered.

About the same time that L.D. Robinson was hoping to auction his pigs, William Edward "Billy" Morgan saw it as a perfect opportunity to get the community involved. At 19, Morgan found himself and several of his friends performing at the rodeo sports rally and working to ensure it would be successful. He loved that the livestock show and rodeo was a community project that connected people while providing funds to invest in the FFA program and facilities. For many years, he as the arena director and was known to many as "Uncle Billy," because of how closely he supported the program and those involved. When the aging arena needed to be replaced, Morgan and three others took out a $10,000 loan to build it. They believed in the program and in Robinson's plan that it would one day pay for itself. The loans were paid back in just three years. Morgan was also a founder of the Katy Rodeo Committee and served as chairman for more than 30 years. His passion for agriculture, farming and ranching went far beyond the boundaries of the Katy program. He wanted to model the importance of volunteering and participating in the community. Morgan attended every rodeo held up until his death.